


Ashes to Ashes

by ClosetLethargy



Series: Twisted Tales of Vocaloids [1]
Category: Vocaloid
Genre: F/M, Other Additional Tags to Be Added
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-06
Updated: 2019-08-09
Packaged: 2019-09-13 02:37:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 5
Words: 17,029
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16884048
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ClosetLethargy/pseuds/ClosetLethargy
Summary: Past or present, it doesn't matter - pain is still pain. Frozen in time with his consciousness fading and anger ripping him apart from the inside out, Prince Kaito, Vampire leader of a kingdom long gone, must find a way to restore his home, break a curse, and not lose himself to the tides of his own wrath in the process. But what if true love's kiss isn't enough anymore?Ratings high because this is a vampire fic and will contain blood and similar subjects. Please read carefully at your own risk.





	1. And Dust to Dust

**Author's Note:**

> Hello there, Closet Lethargy here! I've decided to start cross posing my Fanfiction.net stories over here, so here's the first chapter of one of my personal favorites. This monster of a book (no pun intended) takes a long time to write and edit, and I continually go back and edit some more, so please don't beg for quick updates, as they will be hard to pump out for this story in particular. I want a story line that's similar to Beauty and the Beast, note, SIMILAR, but NOT the same story line. I want to put my own interpretation of the popular Kaito song Ashes to Ashes here, so if anything seems off from different interpretations, this is why. Anyway, I hope you enjoy!

"Hai wa hai ni… chiri wa chiri ni…” 

The dark has become a friend, the night an ally. When shadows chase my lone form, moving under the moonlight, they become safe, a sweet comfort. Sometimes, however, just like the ever changing human will, even my safe haven becomes a boiling volcano ready to burst. My heart ached, not without reason, as the footsteps below approached. I had yet to identify why my chest hurt so whenever a human drew near, but I could not care less, especially when the men who screamed their curses and shouted their demeaning ramblings arrived, again, on my front porch. 

"Honestly, why tonight? Don't they have a care for the blizzard on the way?" I sighed, quirking one eyebrow upwards. I had heard it was a sign of sarcastic annoyance, and it quickly became a beloved habit of mine. I was often annoyed and sarcastic. Or so I've heard. The pounding intensified, fog rolling away like the traitor it was. How these stupid humans had found my castle, I had no idea, and I didn't care. Vampire hunts have become increasingly more popular, and whereas before I had free roam of the night, I risked being discovered should I venture out, and thus I was confined, chained indoors, careful to not leave my own home for weeks at a time. They'd never found me before, and I was quite skilled at hiding my home beneath the fog, but now that the winter winds had arrived, it was difficult to manipulate it as I typically do during the humid summertime.

Several men were screaming at me from where they rammed my door five floors down, but I couldn't hear them from behind the safety of the thick stained glass I leaned against. I couldn't care less why they were here, what they were said to me, but they were disturbing my time of solitude with their insufferable banging against the door. I wasn't worried that they would break in, since my castle was heavily protected with a spell of my own design, but they certainly were annoying. It was difficult to practice my violin when the ramming booms kept throwing me off with their inconsistent beats. Finally, I'd had enough.

I pushed open the windows I was watching out of, instantly drawing their attention. The screaming died down to indecisive muttering. That usually meant they were ready to back down, as they, I'm sure, have never seen my face before now, but I didn't care either way. I drew in a deep breath and let my voice drift down to them in a song; it was an enchanted melody, and would send them away with no memory of where they had gone within the past three hours.

"Mu ~ ge ~ n, ka ~ga ~ mi, me ~ gu ~ ru," I sang angrily, glaring them down. Though it had been quite some time since I'd seen myself in a mirror, I had been told that my blue eyes were bright, piercing, intimidating. The men from the village had long since fallen under my spell, their gazes blank and bodies drooping. The moment I reached the complex section of the song to sing alone, they turned simultaneously and wandered away, back to the village. I continued on even after I lost sight of them; the spell would break if it wasn't finished. Once the last note faded away into the night I returned to the music room, but I no longer felt like continuing with the violin; perhaps the drain from using such a powerful spell had put me in a quiet mood. 

"Sir? Is everything all right?" A quiet voice squeaked from the doorway. The swelling waves of irritation that had been calmed once the men had left were back in full blast, crashing against the rocks of my conscience, grating on every nerve with their razor sharp pricks of agitation. 

"Not now, Piko," I snarled. I wasn't in the mood for him and his timid, optimistic nature. If he broached THAT subject again - 

"Um, sir, was there a female among the group tonight?" Piko ventured shyly. I knew he meant no harm, he was merely curious, but because I was already irritated, I couldn't stop the harsh flow of words that flowed forth, edged with the biting growl that was gnawing at my throat. 

"Piko, you speak one more word on that matter, and I pledge to personally rip your tongue right out of your mouth and send you to dip candles for my castle with it dangling on a string before you for all eternity!" I thundered. The candles blew out as one, and as the snow from the predicted blizzard began pummeling down and swirling madly outside with a ferocious howl, the room fell into semi darkness, sending evil shadows dancing on the walls that rose high above us both. I had partially turned my head to scowl at the servant, and I saw the trembling wisp of a white haired white skinned boy flee the open doorway, his light footsteps hurriedly making for the stairs to his room. Left alone with nothing but a violin and my own bad temper, I sent my tightly curled fist into the stone wall nearest my location with a sharp agonized cry, focusing on venting every last ounce of frustration in that single action. I lowered my head, my chin resting on my chest, leaving my fist pinned to the cracked stone without hardly a passing thought to the shimmering trails of dark red blood seeping down the wall.

Piko was a good worker, and as of the last century, one of the only friends I had left in the world. He was timid but kind, depressing but hopeful. He didn't deserve to be treated in the way that I was prone to treating him, always snapping and screaming and occasionally throwing what happened to be nearby at him even as he ducked for cover or hid his almost always trembling form under or behind anything sturdy enough to block my mindless raging attacks. I let another wrenching cry loose from my sore throat, striking the stone again and relishing the jolting pain that pleaded me to stop the assault. I didn't give in so easily to mortality's demands and began striking the stone over and over, very pointedly ignoring the agony and the red splatters that continually crept up the walls. I drew back for what had to be upwards of my fiftieth punch when a disturbingly warm hand gently reached out and clasped my wrist, drawing my attention away from the massacre I was inflicting on the beaten wall. 

"Kaito, it's okay, just breathe," the deep and rich tones of Gakupo soothed. I hadn't quite realized how heavily I was breathing, how horribly my knuckles ached, or even the chilling tears that had been streaming so long that a puddle had formed at my feet. 

"G - Gakupo!" I yelped, scrubbing furiously at my eyes, trying to erase the evidence of my temporary weakness. It was too late to pretend, and I knew it. Gakupo had the cursed ability to sense whenever I needed help, even if I didn't want it. "Do as I do. In, hold, out, repeat." I did as he said, practicing our now regular routine, internally grumbling the entire time. Gakupo was infuriatingly resilient to my temper and mood swings and rather indifferent to my pessimistic hopelessness, simply because he was too good at understanding where my anxiety stemmed from and the best way to go about fixing it. I hated him for it, but I'd be lost without him, swallowed by blind rage and forever sitting in a sinking black abyss of nothingness. 

"I heard Piko run to his room in tears again," Gakupo commented once I'd calmed some, soothingly pulling me close and wrapping me in his warm arms. I grabbed him back. Gakupo was my closest friend. He was the only one allowed to witness me in such a miserable state, and as I registered the words he'd said, I felt more tears welling in my eyes. It was probably okay to cry just a tiny while longer - "What happened this time?" He asked. I immediately buried my face into the folds of his plum colored kimono, bursting into fresh sobbing.

"I - I don't understand!" I cried. "W - why?! W - why am I such a m - monster?! No woman will ever fall in love with me, t - the curse will n - never be broken, and all I ever do is d - drive the only f - friends I have left away! W - what's left for me in this world, Gakupo?! I'm becoming even m - more of a m - monster each passing day, a - and soon there won't be anything l - left of me!" Gakupo raised one hand to press my head closer to himself, and over the sounds of my wailing, I heard his sigh loud and clear.

"Oh, Kaito, you shouldn't despair so - there's a woman out there just waiting to fall in love with you. Just wait a while longer."

"But how long?" I whimpered, sinking to my knees and dragging my long haired friend with. "I've been waiting for over a hundred years now, how much longer?" His hold on me strengthened.

"Don't give it another thought," he reprimanded kindly. "If you can no longer leave this place out of fear, then as your loyal servant I shall go in your place and find a lady worthy of my master. Leave it to me, you will have your wife before the year of next has ended." I wasn't certain if he heard my last words to him before he leapt out the window into the powdery snow below, but somehow, I knew that he heard me even if not with words.

"Thank you, Gakupo. I'm glad I have you - please, please help me, help our kingdom. You're our only hope."

\\( ' - ' )/

"Brr! Man, that blizzard came out of nowhere the other night, huh?" Hatsune Miku commented to her friend as they worked to clear their neighboring front walks of three feet of new snow, having fallen after the disastrous five feet from the blizzard. Sakine Meiko swept her short auburn bangs aside, feeling a pang of pity for Miku who was constantly wringing out her ground sweeping pigtails and blowing her longer bangs out of her eyes. Both were fruitless endeavors, however, as the sea colored tails would drag along the snow the moment she let go and the wooly hat covering her ears also kept her bangs trapped to keep hanging in her eyes. 

The girl was in desperate need of a haircut, but she refused, claiming that if having long hair kept her warm in a place that was almost always chilly at all times of the year, then she'd put up with the inconvenience. So Meiko merely shrugged and returned to her shoveling, ignoring the huffs of irritation as Miku concentrated more on keeping her long hair dry and out of the way than her work, getting nothing done but aggravating herself in the process. They had been stuck inside since the blizzard until some of the snow melted, but there was still a fair amount left because of the low temperatures, and thus Miku was doomed to either suffer wet hair or put a little back in her work and finish to return indoors for some hot cocoa. 

Meiko had just finished her chore (while Miku tugged helplessly at her hair still with several more feet to shovel) and was setting her tool down when their good friend from further down the road, the beautiful Megurine Luka, came hurrying towards them, waving her arms above her head. Meiko instantly dropped her shovel and ran towards her, calling out "what's wrong?" Luka paused not far from her to catch her breath, her silky sakura locks draping over her shoulders in a waterfall of bright hair.

"T - there's a man, by the woods, he needs help!" Luka gasped out, pointing back the way she'd come. Meiko glanced between her friends, both frozen in uncertainty, and made a snap decision. 

"Miku! Tell my mother and father that I've gone for a medical emergency!" She called to the teal headed girl. She retrieved her family's medical kit that hung above the inside of their front door and followed after Luka, leaving behind a confused Miku still standing in the mounds of snow. "What's wrong with him?" Meiko attempted sounding professional. She was still new to the medical field, preparing to take over the family business, but in truth she was scared. What if it was too serious for her to handle alone? What if she forgot what to do? What if she froze during the procedure and cost the man his life?

"I don't know, I just found him in the snow when I was taking my morning walk and he was just lying there, a - and he was so cold!" Luka exclaimed, leaping through the piles of fluff as elegantly as a gazelle while Meiko huffed and puffed and tramped behind her like a lumbering elephant. She was used to being skilled with her hands, not her feet, while the graceful blue eyed beauty was skilled all around. Meiko was infinitely relieved when Luka's flowing hair swept to a stop with her, and it was simple enough to discover the half buried purple streak at the start of a long hiking trail. The haunted, forbidden trail. Meiko cast a scathing look Luka's way, and those large blue eyes blinked in confusion.

"Luka, whatever possessed you to take THIS path? It's dangerous!" Meiko scolded. Honestly, did she have to play big sister to EVERYONE in the village? She began running her hands over the man to find the problem while Luka crossed her arms and pouted.

"But if I hadn't, I wouldn't have found him!" Luka defended heatedly. "Besides, I was growing bored of all the other paths, I just wanted a change of scenery, that's all!" Meiko swiftly discerned what the problem was - a textbook case of exhaustion and, consequently, slight frostbite. 

"Luka, you're strong, right? I need you to help me carry him back, he needs help!" Meiko insisted. Luka obligingly assisted her, grabbing the oddly dressed man in her arms, and together they carried him back to the village.


	2. Chapter 2: Utatane Piko

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gakupo has vanished on a mission. Kaito is in misery. Piko is scarred. Can anyone help these lost souls?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello there! Closet Lethargy here. I took a bit of a hiatus because of life, and now I'm back to give you the next chapter of Ashes to Ashes! I hope you enjoy! (By the way, who can spot another Vocaloid song reference in this chapter?)

'Three days ago…'

"Piko! Come here!" I shouted out the door, purposely allowing my previous aggravation to seep into my voice. Gakupo had only just minutes ago disappeared from my sight at a sprint through the courtyard, leaving me alone with the only other soul in the house - little Piko, my once best friend in this dark world. I had to apologize to him, but if he thought I was still angry, perhaps he would be quick to appear and this whole episode could be done away with at a fast pace. Soon enough I heard the light and quick steps I had grown accustomed to, and that shivering pale face poked its quivering way around the door frame.

"Y - yes, sir?" He squeaked. His voice was often in a squeak. He was like a frightened rabbit, always squeaking meekly and on the tips of his toes, ready to take flight. I had hidden my dark dripping fists in my pockets, and I strode forward with an aggravated flair even though I was so, so scared of his unforgiving glare...

"Piko, you left my presence," I announced, the boy gulping and cringing away. It sent a pang to my heart that I couldn't identify at the thought that he was backing away so easily because he was absolutely terrified that I would do something horrible to him without Gakupo around. Of course he knew he was gone - his window faced the courtyard. 

"I - I'm sorry, s - sir, i - it won't happen a - again," he cried, skittering further away behind the door as I took another step forward. This was not going well. Not at all. I could feel the anger nipping at me, longing to be furious with this timid boy now under my control, but I forcefully pushed it back. All of this was entirely my fault, and I needn't take it out on my faithful friend so. The growing swells of hatred bit at my every nerve as harshly as before, and rather than face him head on with that anger, I instead stalked heavily to the windows once more and stared unseeingly out at the courtyard. 

"Piko - I'm sorry," I blurted. Better to get this done and over with before he took flight again. "My anger - it's becoming more unstable with each passing day, but that doesn't excuse my actions. I admit I was wrong." I leaned my forehead to rest on the stained glass, relishing in the coolness and drinking in the sight of the mixed colors eagerly. It was better than risking a glance at Piko as I spoke. "Gakupo always says that a good ruler treats his subjects with care and compassion, as without them a king has no country and then he is no king at all. He also says that he must treat his servants even better, because they are the ones who are most loyal to king and country, and will care for their ruler better than anyone in the kingdom. I'm no king, and I can hardly be called compassionate now, but…" I turned to look full on at his shocked face and dropped to the ground, slapping my palms to the space just before my knees and bending to touch my head between them. Really, with how patient the boy had been with me all these terrible years, he deserved so much more than this one single act of humble submission. 

"Please - I beg your forgiveness, Piko. I'm no ruler, not anymore, but I still failed you. Leader or not, nobody deserves to live in fear of someone as you do I. I'm sorry." Silence hung like a suffocating blanket in the air once I had finished, and some remote corner of my soul that had forgotten what it was like to ask for forgiveness cracked and ached mercilessly. As the faint sound of the clock in the foyer continued ticking as the only sound for too many long, agonizing minutes, I slumped to the ground, hiding my traitorously crestfallen expression. Of course he wouldn't forgive me, not this time. I'd put him through too much emotional turmoil this past century and longer, and this last straw was one too many and I knew it. Because of the design of the castle and the nature of the curse, it would be impossible for him to leave, but oh so easy to lock himself away in his room for all eternity.

If he so wished to do so, I would do nothing to stop him. What we had started as were friends. What we used to be were leader and servant. What we had become were master and slave. What we were right now.. nothing but strangers, living in the same quarters, one caught in a desperate struggle with his ever flaring temper and the other scarred and lonely. It was his choice now. I couldn't even honestly lay claim to his loyalty anymore. I'd never in my life felt as helpless and frightened as I did right then. This curse - it was all because of me, because I was selfish. Well, no more. I didn't want him to leave, I didn't, he was the only friend I had left in this world besides Gakupo. But if he did leave... I wouldn't stand in his way. When he said nothing, but I heard hurried footsteps, I knew without a doubt that he had chosen to leave. My body reacted to this by curling up tightly to block the light; it was where I belonged, in this dark - I'd rather chase him down, beg him not to leave my side, but I didn't. How could I? I wasn't even worthy to be called his friend, let alone his authority. There was nothing left I could do. Not now. I was too late. I was 'always too late.'

"S - sir?! Y - you're b - bleeding, a - are you all r - right?!" Slowly, I raised my head, only enough to look up and meet those large blue green eyes of his. Piko was kneeling before me, concern written on his features clearly, and was reaching for my hands with his trembling albino ones. I was numb in shock. Whatever had possessed him to stay after all of that? When he brushed his fingers on mine, I bit my lip hard, drawing yet more blood. It hurt, it hurt so badly, but not nearly as much as the relief filling me and draining the dredges of my anxiety. Piko carefully grasped both my wrists and lifted my hands, and it sapped all my energy to not scream in pain. 

"P - Piko," I panted, trying not to move in the slightest. "Q - q - quit 'p – pulling'…"

"I'm sorry, sir," Piko said, much more confidently but not much more happily. "You've completely shattered the knuckles and a few bones on both your hands - how did this happen?!" Despondently, I allowed my gaze to be drawn to the grotesque portrait on the wall I'd painted and cringed, still feeling the clinging sugar coated uncertainty pulling at my darkened heart.

"Um, sir? I - if I may, was that because of m - me?" Piko questioned quietly.

"Don't - don't worry about it," I grunted, hands shaking from the strain of keeping them stretched out. Finally, Piko returned them to my lap, and I cradled them close. This wasn't the first time something like this had happened; it never got better dealing with the consequences of my actions. Though, I never stopped the impulses, either.

"Sir, I'll take care of your wounds right away," Piko informed me, motioning for me to stay still. He hurried away to fetch the medicinal kit, returning with a skitter and slip on the polished granite. He bent down, carefully beginning to clean and bandage my hands starting at the wrists, peeking up nervously from time to time. The constant annoyance flared up, but I pressed it back. Piko knew well what the curse was doing to me, but he couldn't control himself any more than I could, and if he ran again, I knew something terrible might happen, and there'd be no returning from it. Those big puppy eyes slid upwards and then back again, and I breathed a small sigh.

"What is it, Piko?" I eventually asked. I even startled myself with how tired I sounded. The boy yelped, nearly dropping the bandages. "U - uh, well, sir, I - I didn't mean to upset you so, but… h - has the curse already taken such a toll on you? I - is that why Master G - Gakupo left in your place?" I glanced towards the colored window that Gakupo had carelessly left open, piles of white gathering on the floor as the wind raged just beyond its reach. I hadn't even noticed the temperature's rapid decline. 

"No," I answered quietly. "This awful world is a big place. We just happened to be unfortunate enough to be confined to a place that despises what they do not understand rather than fear it. I wouldn't worry about him, though. He's a kind, quiet and thoughtful man. Nobody would try to hurt him."

\\( ' - ' )/

Present day…'

"Ow! Ow! Ow, would you 'please be so kind as to release me! 'Ow!\" Meiko triumphantly brandished the sheathed sword she'd claimed from the strange man who called himself Gakupo, tightening her hold on him (specifically his Miku length violet locks) as they wrestled about the floor of her cottage. 

"No way! You were the one who suggested doing brief training to see if all your muscles were working properly, so I'm helping you out!"

"My brother, I have errored greatly in my path!" Gakupo cried, trying vainly to release himself from the impossibly tight hold pinning him uncomfortably to the wooden floor. "The world we inhabit is too violent for me to withstand anymore! I have failed both my training and you - I'd like very much to return home now!"

"Who are you talking to?" Meiko asked casually from her perch, content to munch a steaming reheated roll she'd snagged off the counter while she sat like a queen atop Gakupo's spine. 

"I speak to my brother, are you deaf, woman?!" Gakupo retaliated indignantly. Meiko looked around the humble kitchen teasingly, dramatically shading her eyes from the weak light in the room.

"Who? Where? Oh, him, hello! Why yes, your brother *is* a big pain, I'm glad we agree!" Gakupo attempted bucking her off as he recalled seeing a pony do one time, but the effort was wasted. Meiko sat firm, not budged in the slightest. 

"You know nothing, mad doctor! My brother happens to be over sixty miles north, safely from your evil clutches!"

"Yeah?" Meiko mumbled around her second roll. "Tell me, is this brother anything like you? All hotheaded and defensive?" 

'Buuurrrour!' 

Gakupo blushed fiercely at the unwanted gurgle coming from his abdomen, his struggles increasing to be freed. He managed to knock the short haired woman off his back and backed away towards the door, straightening his garments and most certainly not eyeing the plate of rolls stacked on the counter behind Meiko. He'd never felt so utterly embarrassed in his life!

"If you'd be so kind, I am on a time sensitive mission and would very much appreciate my sword back now," Gakupo stated coldly, hoping that talking over that infuriating sound would make it go away. He held out an open palm expectantly. Meiko guiltily placed a warm roll there instead. Gakupo only stared at the food uncomprehendingly for a few moments before looking up at Meiko, who was now awkwardly offering the entire plate to him.

"I'm sorry," she apologized sincerely. "I didn't even think you might be hungry. I know you can't pay for your treatment, and I'd feel terrible for letting you wander off if you were just going to collapse and end up right back here." Gakupo was torn. He knew rations became tight during the winter season and it would be awful to take that from the one who had saved his life, but at the same time, he had not hunted in so long that he'd forgotten how and thus hadn't eaten since he'd left the castle.

"It's okay, just take them," Meiko encouraged. "It's a doctor's duty to make sure their patients are fully recovered before they send them away." She sighed. "Besides, mother went into a baking frenzy the other day, and if we don't eat them soon they'll mold." Gakupo blinked stupidly at her.

"Would you not be able to store them in the snow or an icebox?" Meiko shook her head.

"Not really. Mother is very particular about putting bread out in snow - it's like a phobia of hers. And besides, the icebox is already full, I literally just told you that my mother baked a storm recently." She shoved the plate into his hands, frowning decisively. "Now, if you don't finish all that and the plate of carrots I'll start steaming, I can't in good conscience send you on your way." She grinned slyly. "All you have to do in return is tell me about yourself. Nobody in this area carries a grand old sword like this one just to look cool." Gears were spinning furiously in Gakupo's brain. This woman was violent, yes... but so currently was his master. Perhaps she could be the one to break the curse and free their people. It was worth a try, anyway. Anything to hope for after all this time was a blessing in his eyes.

"Tell me first - have you heard of the tale of the ancient kingdom that vanished over a century past?" Meiko plopped to the ground, carrots forgotten, leaning forward with an intense gleam in her coffee colored eyes.

"I've only heard the ghost stories and rumors - do you know what 'actually happened? Why that whole kingdom disappeared over two hundred years ago?" 

'Good grief, has it really been that long?!' Gakupo thought frantically. 'If that's the case, Kaito is in much more danger than I previously believed!' Quickly composing himself, he cleared his throat. 

"O -over two hundred years ago, there was a bright and happy kingdom, ruled by a gracious king and queen and their son, Kaito. The prince was kind and generous, but he was also very lonely. One day, as he was playing alone in the garden, he came across two mischievous fairies -"

"Hold on!" Meiko injected. "I thought you said this was a true story?" Gakupo paused to wistfully stare at her. There had once been a time when he was as naive and ignorant as she. He only wished he could be that way again.

"Do you have proof that denies that the supernatural exist?" He asked jokingly. Meiko crossed her arms and scowled.

"Do 'you' have proof that they 'do'?" She shot back, challenging him to produce his evidence first. Gakupo wasn't terribly fond of showing this to anyone, but it was all he would need for a doctor such as her. He would gladly cut his all hair off and shatter his prized sword if it meant the safe return of their countrymen and Kaito himself. If this was what it took, he'd do it over and again as often as needed. He gripped the stiff collar of his kimono, gazing deep into her eyes.

"You and your people are famous for their vampire hunts, are they not?" He asked for clarification. There were almost no areas in the entire countryside that did not perform vampire hunts, and based upon the descriptions Kaito had often returned with after his nightly ventures, it appeared as though he were now in the hot spot of such hunting grounds; from the edge of town, it would only take a few hours on foot to make it to the hidden castle. The very thought made him shiver. Of course, Gakupo had meant to avoid this place completely, but getting turned around in a blizzard and eventually collapsing on their doorstep meant that he was there nonetheless, so he may as well make the best of it. "I guess so," Meiko replied, slumping in boredom. Gakupo tipped his head.

"Is there something the matter? If it was something I said, I promise I meant no harm by it." Meiko waved his concern away, glumly propping her chin in her hand.

"It's nothing, I'm just sick of hearing about vampires and death and rumors all the time." 

"I take it, then, that you neither believe in the supernatural nor the vampire your entire village seeks to kill?" Gakupo asked, quite serious. Meiko gave a little chuckle at how somber he was.

"I'm surprised a grown man such as yourself does," she admitted laughingly. Gakupo tugged down at the collar he still clutched, drawing it down to expose his bare neck.

"Then what if I told you - no, proved to you that such creatures as vampires exist?" He asked. Meiko could only blink at the double puncture wounds sunk sharply into his collarbone, deep and clean. And the perfect space apart to belong to a human's canines…

 

"What in the world -? What is this?" Meiko exclaimed, moving closer to examine the puncture marks. The longer she pressed and prodded and looked, the more and more she became convinced that they were, indeed, teeth marks - from a person. Nothing else she could possibly think of could have made that sort of mark unless it was an instrument of some sort, but these marks clearly came from a living source. Gakupo cleared his throat again, very obviously uncomfortable, and replaced his shirt collar as Meiko sheepishly backed away. 

"If you would let me finish my tale, with the mindset that the supernatural does exist as I hope to have proved at least a little, then I would tell you. Where was - oh! Yes, the fairies. These two fairies were known as Kagamines - the dark fairies. They were brightly colored and whimsical little things, a female Rin, and a male Len, as a cover for their true, deceptive selves. Kaito enjoyed playing with the creatures each afternoon, and he kept their presence a secret to enjoy their company all on his own. They were weak, or so they claimed, and Kaito cared for them nearly all the time. He was always disappearing into the garden, at all hours of the day and night. Many months passed as they grew closer together, and one day, Rin told Kaito that she now had the power to grant him a single wish. Please bear in mind that the prince was a mere seven years of age, a young boy with only a vague idea of the bigger picture of life. Well, he thought, and thought, and one day he came up with an idea. 'I want to live forever, with my two best friends, so we can be together forever!' He told the fairy. Being a rottenly mischievous creature, Rin granted his request."

"But it came with a price," Meiko supplied, fully invested in the fairy tale reminiscent story. Gakupo let out a heavy breath and gazed sadly at the floor.

"Yes, and quite a hefty one at that. Rin told him that on his eighteenth birthday, he would cease aging, along with the two friends he had named. Time would be frozen for them all, and if Kaito ever told a soul about the fairies, they would hide the kingdom from him for eternity. Years went by, and soon enough, he began realizing the error of his wish, and once the true horror of what he had done settled in, he came to me for help. He confessed the whole truth, telling me about the fairies and his wish, and just like that, the kingdom was gone. All that were left were he, I and Piko, his other friend. Kaito hunted down the fairies and demanded to withdraw his wish, as he had not yet turned eighteen years. Rin and Len grew angry at this, reminding him that they were friends and he had promised them himself that they could grant the wish. But Kaito didn't want to live forever anymore. He wanted to marry, grow old, and die, and be with the ones he loved until the end. Enraged by his demands, Rin granted his wish right then and there. And Len… well, Len cursed him, to become a monster of the night, a terror to all, and that he forever be immortal, but only retain his sanity one hundred and fifty years, before he would be consumed by rage and become the beast Len doomed him to be."

Gakupo idly drew imaginary drawings on the floor with the tip of his sheathed blade, recalling the horrid details of that day vividly. When he had discovered the fairies’ betrayal - it was an instance he never wished to revisit.

"The last we ever heard from them were these words: 'if you truly wish for your life to resume it's normal, dull course, all you must do is retrieve true love's kiss before your one hundred fifty years pass you by. Then, the curse will break, and those you've lost will be returned. But don't let your hopes rise - for who could ever truly love a creature like you?' And they disappeared. If it's been over two centuries now as you say, then really, we have no hope, as they said. But Kaito still retains his sanity these many years after his supposed demise, so I have to believe that there's still a way to break the curse. But his time runs short - the anger and hatred of the curse is still eating away at him, and if we do not find this cure then he will become the dreaded villain your town fears him as." Meiko was almost afraid to ask at this point, but she mustered the courage and blurted "so how 'did' those puncture marks get there?" She didn't want to hear any more. It was breaking her heart; she hated being alone herself. Besides, she 'was' going into medicine. She was simply curious for the medical aspect, nothing more. At least, that was the mantra running through her head. Gakupo subconsciously rubbed at the tender spot, thinking back on that terrifying night.

"Kaito… he struggles between light and dark, good and wrong, and has ever since the curse took hold. But he was dying - without drinking blood, as a vampire, he would simply waste away and crumble like a leaf in a fire. He stayed strong for so long, but then he became weak and ill. I begged him to drink my blood - at least enough to stay alive. He wouldn't hear of it and was absolutely horrified that such thoughts could enter his mind. But, one night, he simply couldn't take it anymore. He was nearly starved, and to save his life, his unnatural instincts took over his mind and he attacked me without warning. He took so much from me that I was laid up for days, too weak to even speak. Once I recovered, I pleaded with him again, and now he prevents future repeats by coming to me to fill himself once in a while. It's all he can do - if I were a normal human with normal limitations, I would have been lost the second he grabbed hold. I suppose I should be thankful for my long lasting life, since it keeps both of us alive, but I just can't. Every time I feel those sharp teeth digging into my flesh it reminds me of his childish fantasy, bought at the price of his own sanity."

Meiko was silent for a few moments, collecting her thoughts. If the story was indeed true, as she thought it to be, since Meiko was quite trusting and could currently think of nothing to discredit its reality, then all they needed was…

 

"All we need is to find a sweet, caring, compassionate, strong young woman to fall in love with the prince and break the curse with true love's kiss," Gakupo vented, dashing his sword hilt to the wooden floor with a loud clap. Turning his burgundy oval eyes to her, Meiko felt the thrill of adventure and the prospect of love and excitement race up her spine and tingle her heart - could Gakupo possibly think she was the underappreciated beauty of her time that would be able to break the centuries old curse and become a living legend of the country? 

"Meiko," Gakupo began. Meiko leaned closer expectantly.

"Yes?" She barely breathed, suddenly deciding in that instant that the medical profession wasn't for her - being a princess was. That was what happened when one married a prince, right? Meiko despised that she still resided with her parents at her age, and she didn't want to grow old and alone. What did she have to lose?

"Meiko," he repeated, "would you…"

Meiko swallowed her bubbling excitement. "Yes?"

"Would you... happen to know someone kind and compassionate like that?" 

There was a brief pause.

"You'd better start running, swordsman."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry, Kaito! Yes, I am cruel to characters I like, but who isn't? It helps to show their courage despite what their circumstances throw at them. (I also had a lot of fun writing Meiko's and Gakupo's first meeting! I hope you enjoyed, and please review if you liked it! \\( ' - ' )/


	3. Return to the Castle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Meiko joins the party! When the confusing girl finally arrives at the castle, nothing could have prepared these three quiet males for her boisterous attitude...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's the new chapter! I hope you enjoy!

Meiko was very much unimpressed with the self-proclaimed samurai standing before her, a wash of purple marking the entrance to the haunted trail. 

"You're joking." It was a rock solid statement. "There is no possible way that you ran all the way here, through a blizzard, for three days straight."

"I… did remember to inform you that I am not a normal mortal anymore, yes?" It was a blatantly rhetorical question. Meiko huffed, tucking her mittened hands deep in the folds of her red coat pockets to keep them warmer. "So that's why you were found so cold and exhausted," she grumbled. "But don't you have, I don't know, a couple of horses or something? If you think I'm walking for Three Whole Days and Nights -"

"Don't be ridiculous, my lady, the castle resides only a few hours' walk from this very spot!" Gakupo snorted, offended that she would assume he'd force the girl he chose for his prince to travel such a long distance all at once, and on foot, too! "Don't be so vulgar! I'm no barbarian, despite what you seem to believe, and I would never force a lady to endure such extremities, even one as violent as yourself! Ladies are to be treated gently and sweetly, and while I may dislike you, I still hold by my beliefs on this matter!" Meiko snarled back, softened by his genuine speech. She felt she could melt into the snow like hot butter - nobody in her life had ever been so considerate towards her before. Even if they were a complete jerk.

"And you, sir, how dare you insult a woman of my profession? If I so chose, I would walk twice that distance! Don't presume that I'm a tender withering flower that needs special loving care in order to stay strong and beautiful!" (Even if she did enjoy the thought of being doted on and loved like a flower that required much tender care…) Gakupo bowed, bangs sweeping low to cover his eyes.

"I presume nothing. After you, my lady." Meiko stomped off in a huff, trudging through the deep snow that no one had been brave enough to clear away. After several long and uninteresting minutes into their relatively short journey, Meiko decided to start a conversation with the self-proclaimed samurai. She wasn't a withering flower, she wasn't, but it felt… nice. Nice to hear that she was admired, even if shallowly. Although… it was making her slightly uncomfortable that Gakupo remained so quiet behind her. 

"Say, Gakupo, what's this Kaito like?" She asked, pressing a finger to her chin as she thought. "Will he try to drink my blood? Or kill me in my sleep? Because if that's the case you'd better find a different woman. I get frightened easily. I probably should've mentioned that earlier, did you know I'm terrified of spiders? This castle better be clean. What do you do for food? I should probably warn you that I'm allergic to eggs. Is that weird? Will Kaito think it's weird? Hey, if this prince is a vampire, does that mean there aren't any mirrors? Because I could really use one to do my hair in the morning. Should I have packed more stuff, or will there be clothes and things already there I can use? Maybe I should've actually said good bye to my parents instead of leaving that note on my pillow that says I left for an indefinite study vacation…" Gakupo listened absentmindedly to Meiko's ramblings, amazed by her unfazed attitude. In the last two hours, she had calmly accepted the fact that he was basically kidnapping her to become the personal doctor to a vampire, the very one her entire village wanted dead, that she had absolutely no knowledge of besides rumors to go on.

He may not like her, but she was remarkable. She just had to be the one to break the curse. Of course, she didn't exactly know that she was supposed to fall in love with Kaito - some quick thinking on Gakupo's part had convinced her that the prince was in need of a personal doctor until they found the true maiden. She had grudgingly agreed, regardless of having her brief dream shattered and her pride wounded. But something dark nagged at him - there was something not right about all this. He was certain she was the one he needed. But… Meiko's swift acceptance, and finding her so quickly - it was too easy. It should've been harder than this, especially after all those long nightly strolls that Kaito had taken in the hopes of discovering his bride. He never had. With the village so close, it would've been impossible not to find *someone* after all that time. 

Why had Gakupo come across the perfect woman in a mere three days (granted, he was only conscious enough to meet her for a few hours) when Kaito had spent more than his fair share of hopeless years searching every single night without fail, not even having caught a glimpse of a female in that duration of time? It didn't add up. Could this be part of the curse, that Kaito couldn't even be allowed to choose who he fell in love with? He resolved himself to pay close attention to every detail of everything he came across in the future. There was a gnawing feeling growing in him that whispered DANGER!. He wished he knew what the danger was - as of right now, they were all headed to Kaito's world; the darkness. 

\\( ' - ' )/

He was pacing again. Piko watched, carefully hidden behind the sliver of the door to the music room that was cracked open, as Kaito paced up and down and up and down. It was making Piko dizzy simply watching him, and he'd been at it for hours. Normally, Kaito would waste the day away with napping and playing various instruments about the room, perhaps sing a song or two, and head out for a night of walks and exploration, but ever since the incident three days back, he'd done nothing but pace, all day, all night, only breaking to swallow a few meager bites of food, at Piko's silent insistence, and return to his pacing. His eyes were ringed and looked heavy to prop open, and Piko was steadily growing more concerned for his health by the hour, but he dared not say a word; when he had tried, towards sunset on the first day, Kaito had waved his concerns away with a clipped, dull tone, but when he'd pressed, Kaito had grown enraged, thrown into a fit worse than Piko had ever witnessed before.

With a bandage covering the scar now etched cleanly on his forehead, the albino teen wisely kept his distance, not uttering a sound and keeping well out of sight, like an invisible church mouse. The shattered vase of flowers with the blood tipped shards had been hurriedly cleaned on a rare instance when Kaito had stepped out to use the facilities, the porcelain dumped in the trash and the dying flowers tossed to the empty garden. The castle was tense and quiet, and ever since the vase had vanished from sight, the prince had said nothing. Not a cough, not a sigh. He was utterly silent, and Piko was more worried about this newfound silence than his recent temper flares, and kept a close eye on him at all times, fearing he might self-destruct the moment Piko should turn away. It was while he was keeping vigil, just as tired and hungry as Kaito and unknowingly nodding off at his post, that he saw the prince angle towards the window, heavily draped but opened enough to see out onto the front lawn, and approached it curiously. Whatever he saw, Piko didn't expect him to give a full-blown bodily jerk, whirl and dart for the door, unintentionally knocking the pale boy to the ground in his haste to clumsily stumble down the stairs and fling open the front door, shying away from the direct yet fading sunlight.

Piko hurried after him, sliding down the banister sideways so he didn't risk tripping down the stairs in his tired state, and gaped at the open door. There, on the doorstep, proudly stood Gakupo, and beside him stood the first female they had laid eyes on since the day the curse was cast. With her red overcoat and matching mittens, wind-blown short chestnut hair and cheeks and nose flushed from the cold, she was definitely the most gorgeous sight in all the grand castle. Clinging to the door frame for dear life, eyes matching those of a raccoon and mouth agape with fangs glinting in the light of the setting sun, Kaito was definitely the scariest sight Meiko had ever witnessed. She let out a little scream and ducked behind Gakupo, the friendliest defense she had between her and the - THING hiding in the shadows. Surely it must be Kaito, but he'd rushed at her so quickly; it was as if he smelled her coming and wanted to eat her as a treat!

"No need for fear," Gakupo sighed for what had to be the twenty first time that day. "Let me introduce you - majesty, this is Sakine Meiko, a doctor from a nearby village. She has agreed to tend to us until we discover your bride to be. Miss Meiko, this is Prince Kaito, ruler of this estate, and the ghostly little form behind him is our chef, maintenance and garden keeper, Utatane Piko. And now that we've passed around our names, Meiko could probably do with coming in out of the snow and enjoying a nice hot cup of tea." He narrowed his eyes, glancing between Kaito, who had yet to bat an eye nor close his mouth, with his wrinkled, blood splattered coat still on from three days past, and Piko, head bandaged and very obviously sleepy, guiltily shifting from foot to foot. "And perhaps while she relaxes and settles in, you two can tell me what happened while I was away." Piko jolted and scurried off to make the tea, while Kaito weakly collapsed to the ground like a child, staring up at Meiko in wide eyed wonder.

"G - Gakupo, does she - can she really do it?" Kaito whispered, eyes bright and for the first time in so many years, hopeful. Meiko softly giggled - she couldn't help herself. With him sitting on the ground, legs splayed out before him, hands pressed to the ground between them, staring up at her with those big eyes and mouth open, he really did resemble an overgrown child. He didn't appear scary now - just surprised. Taking a closer look dissolved the oddly cute sight, however. His hands were heavily bandaged up to his fingers; what could have caused that? It looked recent. He appeared dead tired (no pun intended) and… was it just her, or did he seem just a tad malnourished? Of course, Meiko knew nothing of vampires - perhaps this was normal. But, human or not, it still didn't look quite right.

"Yes, yes, I pray I will be of service to his majesty," Meiko rattled off mechanically, kneeling to take a closer look at the thick bindings around his knuckles. "What happened to have done such damage? Come inside, I want to take a closer look!" Sputtering helplessly, Kaito was unceremoniously dragged inside, and Gakupo followed after, eager to hear the specifics of why Piko had bandages on his head suggesting an injury and why they both appeared beaten down and tense. He pinched the bridge of his nose with forefinger and thumb, letting himself inside and locking the door behind him. Honestly, he leaves the castle for Three Days…

\\( ' - ' )/

I felt positively heartbroken, to put it mildly. Meiko, too, looked upset to some lesser extent, while Piko lay curled up by the fireplace, watching the fire crackle and pop and snap with a gloomy air that radiated disappointment far heavier than usual.

"Are you correct about that, Gakupo?" I inquired softly. "Has our time really been up… for over ninety years?" Gakupo, fiddling absently with his sword removed from its sheath as he talked, lowered his eyebrows as he thought.

"Maybe our time has not yet expired," he murmured. I rebelliously tossed my arms skyward and let them crash heavily to my lap once more to imitate a gesture of frustration. He was so crazed CONFUSING! Could the man speak Nothing in a clear manner?!

"How, Gakupo?! How can you STILL hold out hope?!" I heard my own voice cracking with the pressure of tears I wasn't ready to release. "It was my mistake that led to this. I bear the responsibility; there's nothing left for us to do but to wait until our final demise. Rin and Len were very clear - I had exactly one hundred and fifty years to find my true love to break the curse, no more, no less, and once that time was up, there would be no going back." I lowered my head onto the couch arm, burying it in the folds of my sapphire colored sleeves. "So that's it then - I've failed. We'll continue in this manner until we are ultimately destroyed by man. Any moment now, we'll turn on one another, and become the monsters the fairies saw in our hearts." 

"Now hold on one moment here," Gakupo interrupted. "I haven't explained my theory yet! Listen to me, Kaito, not all hope is lost. You're living proof of such a miracle! Look at yourself - you grapple with your conscience, but that's just it, the anger you feel has not consumed you yet! I know you struggle, but don't give up on us yet! Your sanity has not deserted you yet, has it? Perhaps the fairies truly did care for you and extended the time you have left." Gakupo quietly frowned. I didn't like when he frowned so - it usually meant he was upset. Typically so with me. "But now we don't have a deadline to meet - we must be swift to break this curse before you're lost for good." I shook my head - already unkind words were resting on the tip of my tongue, but I didn't allow their passage. 

"But we don't KNOW that," I reiterated rather impatiently in their stead. Gakupo crossed over and rested his hand on my arm, giving me a bright smile. It would forever remain a mystery to me how he was able to smile in such circumstances.

"Then forget the curse for now. Just put your trust in me as you once did. Will you do this?" I shuddered. The last time I had verbally told him that I had trust in him was that fateful night we became immortal; I didn't want to relive that awful night again. But if the ever faithful Gakupo so wished…

"I - I t - trust you, G - Gakupo," I managed to stutter out. He moved his hand to my hair and grinned that silly crooked grin of his.

"Very good. Now, on to a new subject, would either of you be kind enough to explain just what happened after I departed those three days ago? I do not wish to pry into private affairs, your highness, but as Piko is my charge as well, it is my duty to know why he is sporting a bandage I know nothing of." He reclaimed his seat as an almost tangible despair crept on me like wild vines of ivy, circling, tugging, suffocating -

"I - it was nothing," Piko started. I couldn't let him speak, he would try to make his injury seem like an accident. I couldn't let him pretend that nothing happened, that I was still in the right and clear, that there wasn't an angry beast inside me anxiously awaiting to hurt those I loved.

"No, it wasn't" I interrupted bitingly, refusing to watch Piko surely widening his eyes and then turning away to the fire once more. His habits, as were Gakupo's, were so familiar to me I knew them all by heart. I never wanted to hurt him; asking for forgiveness when I did almost made it seem as though he wasn't frightened of my every move, that we were once again innocent children playing and wrestling all about the castle even while the adults scolded and disapproved. How I dearly longed for things to have never changed between us… "Piko, he… well… I… I wasn't looking after myself, and Piko was trying to help me… I… I lost my temper with him. I threw that old flower vase at him, the one with the yellow stripes? He… he didn't dodge fast enough… I - I'm so sorry, Piko -"

"P-please, it's okay, sir," Piko told me in that light stuttering tone. Oh, how that tone utterly infuriated me sometimes!

"But you shouldn't HAVE to be! You shouldn't be okay with ANY of this, Piko, don't you care? I hurt you and cursed you and doomed you to live with a monster until the day a human instrument of death is turned upon you! I know you care, Piko, I know you care so much it hurts, so please don't lie to me and say this doesn't bother you!" I couldn't bear to watch them anymore, the silent Meiko covering her mouth with both delicate hands in horror, Gakupo watching me with that strange, pitying look, and little Piko trembling like a leaf in the wind, ready to be blown away at any moment. I made a hasty retreat to my sanctuary, the music room, and paced several more laps around its grand interior. Pacing scrambled my mind from repetition; the activity helped me forget, just for a little while. Once I'd had my fill of the monotony, I wandered to the windows; I couldn't hold an instrument until the bones in my hands finished healing, almost a month forthcoming. All I had left was my voice. I wasn't terribly in the mood to sing, though. Singing brought me a small amount of happiness and peace, and I just couldn't find it in myself to want to be cheered up just yet. 

There was too much weighing upon my heart and mind to even find the time to relax. What Gakupo had told me surely couldn't be true. How could over two hundred years have passed? The Kagamines had been very clear. One hundred and fifty years was all I had. Either someone was mistaken about how long we had, or I was correct, and I had failed. But then… why should my sanity remain within me and my anger kept in check, had my time truly expired unawares? Perhaps Gakupo was right after all… perhaps the Kagamines had truly cared for me after all. That could be all that would prevent the fairies from returning for their final revenge. They lived by a law that was absolute - should they bestow a gift, the gift lasted forever, if a curse was enacted, that curse was followed to the letter even if it took all of time. It was the way of their kind; they were unwavering in everything they did. If only I hadn't doomed us all… everyone, my family, Piko's family - 

"EXCUSE me!" Snapped a rude voice from the doorway. I whirled, finding Meiko standing firm with skinny arms crossed tight. Hadn't I barred that door? From the inside? "Look, I can understand if you want to be alone, but if you recall, highness, I'M supposed to be your doctor. Technically, with the way you are now, I need to be by your side. Twenty four hours a day, seven days a week." She grinned, like the castle cat that ate our canary. "You'll find that I take my job VERY seriously." I felt my head tilt in bewilderment. Where in this wide world had Gakupo found this crazy woman?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I realize things seem a bit rushed, and I apologize. I do have plans in the future of fleshing this out much more, but for now, enjoy the unfleshed, hurried version. The full thing will be a very long time coming. Please review if you enjoyed! \\( ' - ' )\


	4. Unexpected

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Everything is going...smoothly, more or less, and Meiko has high hopes. However, when things escalate, will anyone know what to do?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone, Closet Lethargy here! I'm sorry my chapters have slowed down to a snail's pace, but life has been busy. Also, I have to apologize for the comparative shortness of this chapter, but the next ones should be longer. Without further ado, I hope you enjoy reading!

Gakupo stood in the tower, letting the freezing wind whip his long locks back and forth while he stared at nothing, one hand calmly resting on the hilt of his sword. To all appearances, he looked as though he'd frozen stiff in the blistering chill and stinging snow. In truth, he was thinking. The elements had long since lost their effect on him, and thus he barely felt the numbing cold at all. The open window tower had always been a place of quiet contemplation for him, a place of retreat, when the world became too much or when he needed some much desired time alone. This time, he felt no stress, no weighing anger or sadness; what he felt was guilt. He had always lived by an honorary code. It was to never deceive another as he had once been deceived. Today he had broken that code. He had just deceived Meiko, the woman he hoped would have the power to free him from his awful fate. And he had purposely - intentionally - tricked her.

Normally such a thing wouldn't bother him quite so strongly. But he felt an inexplicable guilt surrounding and darkening his heart. There were multiple deceptions involved; the first being his relation to Kaito. The girl had no idea that the brother safely sixty miles away from her was the very same one he had brought her to for courting. Of course, only Kaito was of royal blood, but that was a different matter entirely. The next was the curse itself. He'd left out a few rather… important details when telling her the story. And yet another was her sole reason for being in the castle right that very moment. She was to fall in love with Kaito under the pretense of simply being the equivalent of a royal nurse. The worst part was that he couldn't even reveal the truth to her yet. Not until the curse was broken. This code he had broken now weighed on him because there was no immediate fix. Such a thing had never been a problem before. Now that it was… what did he do about it?

And another problem was his younger brother. Kaito had been through a lot in his seventeen human years and two hundred and who knew how many inhuman. He was becoming more reckless, more consumed, more dangerous as the days wore on. At Gakupo's estimations, the three of them only had until winter's end to rescue his weakened heart. He used to be such a happy, cheerful boy. It was rare to see even a fake smile cross his face anymore. Gakupo knew what would happen to he and their good friend Piko should they fail in their efforts, and should he ever succumb to such a fate, his spirit would surely break, forced to spend an unforeseeable amount of time as a bloodthirsty beast that roamed in search of fresh prey, unconscious of his actions until the day of his mortal body’s death. It was a horrible destiny for someone who used to own such a kind will. Even now, Gakupo was certain that he was only staving off his inevitable end by remembering his selfless side, the one that would never dream of hurting anything, let alone his own friends. Gakupo slowly inhaled and let out his breath, watching the wind whisk away the condensed cloud into nothing. 

What had really happened that night – he honestly didn’t recall everything. He left out certain details of the story, half to protect the villager, and half because even he didn’t know some of it. What he remembered just about amounted to what he had told the girl that morning and the fact that the curse had drained Kaito entirely of every emotion but anger, sadness and a small corner of love. Other than those, he was empty, a shell of his human self. And, as with much else, he absolutely hated it. Gakupo sighed again and tilted his head back so that moon reflected in his eyes, lonely and quiet. It offered him no answers. He didn’t bother asking. Eventually, commotion from within the castle drove him indoors. He couldn’t help the feeling of disappointment that washed over him. If Meiko did not fall in love with his brother – he had failed. And that would be a fate worse than death. 

\\( ‘ – ‘ )/

The chestnut headed teen stalked into the dark room, her painted lips pursed and her eyes sparkling in what little light there was. Her nightmarish patient had been in this room for far too long.

“Honestly, did no one ever tell you that trying to read in the dark is bad for your eyes?” She demanded, swiftly crossing the music room’s polished and cracked floor to throw open the curtains, bathing the room in gentle moonlight. Then she took the lit candle Piko had given her (as they didn’t often light lamps everywhere, only where they happened to be) and lit the lanterns to brighten the room. Kaito, who had been reminiscing and lounging on the sofa with a novel his mother had once written but never showed anyone except her beloved son, blinked owlishly at her, his eyes darker than before. Meiko had barged in twice now – the first time kicking open the door that now required repairing, and when she had left to join Piko for a bite in the kitchen, he thought he’d finally gotten some relief from her. How could Gakupo think the two of them could fall in love with each other? It was ridiculous, the girl was much too impatient and headstrong – and a little bit of an airhead. She had earned such a title from him by suddenly babbling about various subjects to fill in his peaceful silences. 

“Did you not notice that I have been reading just fine with almost no light?” He replied tiredly, rubbing his eyes and pinching his dry nose. He peeked at her with his vibrantly colored mismatched orbs. “Vampires are creatures of the night. That means the darkness is as daytime to you humans.” Meiko tipped her head curiously.

“Does that mean that I just made the room darker for you?” She asked, wanting to glean as much information as she possibly could about his habits straight from his own mouth. Kaito stretched – he felt stiff and sore and drained. Perhaps he’d sat for too long. He was more used to pacing than sitting quietly.

“No. You made it brighter. But I just don’t look at light the same way anymore. Direct sunlight can kill me, so I avoid it as much as possible. Much more than a few candles hurt my eyes anyway. The human equivalent would be that of staring into the sun for a second – multiplied by six. I have surprisingly good night vision.” Meiko smacked her fist in her palm, her face lighting up. 

“Oh! So you’re like a cat!” Kaito snarled and stood up to stretch out his sore muscles. He felt cramped and cranky, and Meiko was not helping improve his mood in the slightest.

“Excuse me if I prefer not to be compared to a cat, who are renowned for not just having night vision, but poor night vision.” Meiko scrunched up her nose.

“No they don’t,” she rebutted. “They have really good night vision. I’m trying to make comparisons so I can understand how you see the world.”

“But why? And why a cat? Why not an actual nocturnal animal?”

“Because you can still see during the day too, right?”

“Yes, because I’m not fully nocturnal.”

“Exactly, so I picked a cat. They’re mostly active during the day but they can be nocturnal.” Kaito opened his mouth to refute her, but then closed it with a sharp snap. Why was he wasting his time arguing over cats? He then paused as a revelation struck him. He was cranky and irritated – but not angry. He’d been arguing without driving her away or threatening her. Meiko noticed his silence and odd facial expressions and casually tacked on another comment to draw him out of his thoughts. He didn’t need to be dwelling on anything other than the current conversation if she was going to help his mental state at all.

“…besides, I think you’d look cute as a cat.” She hurriedly trotted out of the room before he could fully process what she had said, and she giggled when she heard an indignant “No I would NOT!” ring loudly from the music room. But he didn’t give chase; instead he started muttering profusely about girls and their obsessions with animals. Meiko popped her head back through the door and flashed him a wink when he caught her. 

“By the way, it’s dinnertime and you have to actually come to the table to eat. The music room is for music, not food, and I refuse to watch you soil the room with food when there are instruments here. Oh, and if you don’t come right away, I’m going to get that insufferable samurai of yours to come and drag you there.” Kaito’s eyes grew into saucers.

“Gakupo would never do such a thing! I am his friend!” He howled indignantly. Meiko wagged her finger disapprovingly at him. 

“And friends don’t let friends suffer. Your choice.” She slipped back downstairs to the dining room, where Piko was anxiously waiting surrounded by a variety of steaming dishes of food. “He’ll be right down,” she informed him cheerily. She was curious about their completely normal food stores, how they got them, but she figured it could wait until another day. It wasn’t high on her curiosity list. Behind her, she heard the prince attempting to muffle his steps as he heavily clomped down to the dining area – a room he never visited anymore, as it had become Piko’s domain over the years. He cautiously leaned inside the heavy doors, unsure what to expect. He felt like an idiot – it was his own castle and he was treating it like it wasn’t. Piko snapped to attention and bowed; he always was a formal one. 

“Good evening, sir. Your food is ready for you.” Kaito bit back everything that he was dying to snarl in response and forced out a polite “thank you.” Meiko smiled. There was progress. She’d heard much about his gloominess from Gakupo and had immediately taken on caring for his mental state as well as his physical. If he could become civil again he would have a much better chance of charming some girl to be his wife and breaking the curse. So far, in the last several hours, she was feeling quite accomplished. He was responding well to her – maybe tomorrow would be as successful! The dark headed prince crept to the table lit by candles with his head held high – if he so much as twitched away from Piko, the albino would surely begin feeling guilty again and their unbroken circle of fighting and making up would continue. For the sake of their guest, both were putting their best foot forward. Kaito sat, and Meiko plopped right down next to him. He noticed her eyeing his food and reaching for his silverware and quickly batted away her hand.

“You are not going to feed me,” he huffed, trying really, really hard not to snap too harshly at her. “I have been perfectly capable of eating by myself like an adult for more decades than you’ve been alive!” Meiko ignored him and instantly snatched the fork out of his reach. His hand had begun trembling when he’d started reaching for the utensils, and Meiko was positive he was far from being healed no matter how fast he could reset his bones. At least, that’s what she was assuming. She stabbed a forkful of broccoli and was just about to shove it down the prince’s throat when she realized something.

“Hey, where’s Gakupo? We can’t eat without everyone here, that’s rude!” 

“It’d be ruder to invite him,” Kaito grumbled, pouting in his seat. Meiko scoffed.

“Why? That’s stupid! He needs to eat, too!”

“Do you know nothing, you brainless girl?” Kaito snarled, quickly losing his composure. His patience was draining, and fast, and no matter how hard he tried, he just couldn’t keep it bottled up. “Gakupo is a man who does as he pleases when it pleases him. I am his prince, yes, but even I respect his desire to not join us. He knows there is food prepared and he will join us as he wills. He may prefer to eat alone and not come at all! Leave him be!” Meiko shrank back, looking down and away from him.

“Hmph. I was just trying to be nice, you don’t have to shout at me.” Kaito angrily raked a hand through his hair, his eyes darkening to a glossy ebony and crimson. His fangs stood out prominently as he raised his voice, stood and slammed a palm on the table, rattling the dishes and knocking the glasses over.

“That’s it! I’m through being polite to a disrespectful human! Do you hear me now? This is me shouting! You will be gone by morning or I shall throw you out myself!” He hunched forward, his ‘shouting’ becoming a loud, echoing roar. “DO YOU UNDERSTAND ME YET, YOU STUPID GIRL?! OUT!!” Meiko couldn’t help but cower; he was so loud her ears were ringing. Piko, holding up a serving plate like a shield, cautiously ventured forward a small inch or two.

“S-sir, perhaps you s-should –“

“I should WHAT?! Calm down? NO! I’m not going to CALM DOWN, Piko!” Gulping down a few harsh breaths, he grit out “I shall be in my chambers. I do not wish to be disturbed.” He stalked out of the room, slamming the doors behind him and fleeing to his room, a small tinkling sound left in his wake. His room was, fittingly, at the highest level of the castle. A place where he could be alone. All alone. Locked away, like he should be. Where no one could find him. Where he couldn’t hurt anyone. He didn’t think, he only acted. Two sides of his conscience were screaming at him, a war running rampant in his head, one side telling him to apologize, don’t do this, just apologize and start again, the other berating that he deserved this, that he’d done it again, why bother? Round and round they went, his body moving of its own accord, wrapping a cloak and a small bundle of mismatched clothes into a sack and pulling it tight. How he reached the ground safely from his window, he didn’t recall, he simply kept moving, running away. He knew he was acting childishly, it’d only been a little while that Meiko had been there and he shouldn’t expect anything to change right away, but he couldn’t do it. The progress was coming much too slowly – by the time anything significant had happened it would be too late. He could feel it; the impulses were becoming too strong to restrain. 

It was much worse now than simply yelling and throwing things – he’d had a knife clenched in his fist, ready to strike, when he’d come to himself and fled the table. He had wanted to kill. Anything, anyone, he wanted death. Destruction. Pain. The only reason left in himself had shoved its feeble way forward, stopping him before he’d acted out. These were people he cared about, he reasoned as he headed deeper into the forest, anxiously running and running as if being far enough away could help solve everything, make the pain go away, let him be happy again. He knew, though, deep in his heart, as deep as he was in the woods many, many hours later, as the first rays of dawn were appearing on the horizon …that he was never destined to have a happy ending. He would never win. The kingdom was lost, and it was all his fault. He wanted to die. He was a coward. He couldn’t do it. He had to be alone; that much he knew. All alone. As alone as could be. He was a monster.

And all monsters deserved to die.

And die alone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Uh oh, things got crazy really quickly...was it too fast? Too unexpected? Too ooc? And what will happen now? Please share your critiques and ideas! And thanks for reading! \\( ' - ' )/


	5. The Hunt

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this took so long...motivation is a hard thing to find amidst writer's block. I hope you enjoy!

“It’s okay, Piko, I’m sure he’ll calm down soon.” Gakupo paused outside the dining room door when he heard Meiko speaking. He had smelled the food from the tower and instantly felt ravenous, leaving his musings and following his nose. Upon reaching the dining room, he’d stopped. It was odd; Piko never brought meals to the dining hall anymore. He always prepared meals in the kitchen, and the prince and Gakupo would come as they pleased, take what they wanted, and withdraw to their own sanctuaries. Not to mention what he’d heard spoken – had Meiko organized the dinner?

“What’s going on?” Gakupo asked innocently, pushing open the heavy door. Piko was sitting in one of the dining room chairs, his head on the table and his knees cradled in his arms, while Meiko hovered over him, her hand pressed between his shoulders. Neither of them bothered answering his question. As he took a step further into the hall, his foot hit something small that made a metallic clink as it skidded and collided with the table leg. It was one of the serving knives, and looking around, he saw that it was the one from a suspiciously empty seat with a plate of food before it. He called it suspicious, because while there were two seats set the same way, only one had the chair pushed out at an odd, crooked angle. Gakupo frowned at the silence.

“I repeat, what is going on?” Gakupo demanded. Piko refused to look up at him, curled up on his seat like a lost child. Meiko, however, either was oblivious to the building tension in the room or simply didn’t care.

“He…Kaito…he started shouting at us – and screaming – and he picked up one of the knives off the table. He must not have realized what he was doing – he just dropped it and ran off to his room and told us not to disturb him.” Gakupo didn’t like the sound of that. He knew perfectly well that Kaito wouldn’t have locked himself in his room, where he could be surrounded by shadows of the past and memories of the present that could haunt his mind in the deafening silence of the stone castle walls. If anything, his own bedroom would be the one place he would try to avoid in times like these.

“Stay here,” he commanded. He hurried up the steps to his brother’s room, and, just as he’d suspected, found it empty. Clothes were strewn everywhere, both on the floor and draped haphazardly over open dresser drawers. The window was open, blowing in blasts of chilling winds that were finally devoid of flakes from the earlier storm. Gakupo had never felt so helpless before – had his brother gone mad? He really felt like bashing his head against something solid and heavy for a good long while, but he knew that wasn’t helpful at the moment, so he quickly returned to the dining area. If he’d found himself in any trouble on his unexpected escapade, anything like last time…“Kaito is gone,” he snapped. “Piko, stay here and wait. Perhaps he’ll realize how absolutely childish he’s acting and return on his own. Miss Meiko, please bundle warmly and come with me. We need to find him before he gets into trouble.” He couldn’t help recalling that day, many years ago, when the prince had pulled the same stunt. Visions of dancing fire and echoing screams of pain rang through his mind as he quickly urged Meiko outside to join him. Together, they rounded the side of the castle, towards Kaito’s bedroom window, and immediately discovered his footprints. Gakupo didn’t say anything. He simply grunted in frustration, and firmly secured the latch over his sword hilt.

Silently, they hurried in the direction the prints led, deep into the dark woods beyond the grounds. 

\\( ‘ – ‘ )/

Piko sat quietly for quite a while, perhaps an hour or two, he wasn’t entirely sure, listening to the ancient ticking of the main hall clock. He’d never been all alone in the castle for so long before. There was always one other person in the castle at all times; Kaito in the music room, or Gakupo in the garden. It was unsettling, knowing that no one else was either in the castle or at least nearby. Tick, tick, tick. Beyond the clock’s ticking, never in need of winding, the crackling of the fire in the parlor faintly added its noise to the solitary sound. He eventually shook himself out of his shock, and set about cleaning up the unused dishes and saving the leftovers that could be salvaged. Often, he attempted humming a tune as he worked, to keep his spirits up, but as of late he’d fallen away from the habit. He worked on silent autopilot anymore; it was all he could do. Previously, he’d always found something to do with his hands to keep himself occupied, but there was only so much to do before he couldn’t concentrate on a puzzle or think about the words in a book. He knew all the puzzles, and he had the books memorized. He didn’t have anything thought provoking without anyone else around to stimulate his thought process. Thus, he just lost himself in blissful monotony where he didn’t have to think about anything at all.

He was putting the last of the food away, perhaps three or four hours after being left alone, in the cellar when he heard three heavy, purposeful bangs on the oaken front door. He slammed the cellar closed and rushed to open the door, hopeful that it was Gakupo and Meiko with their missing prince. He swung the door open wide, and blinked in disbelief. Before him were certainly two figures, but neither had the chestnut hair, ruby coat, sword nor violet locks. Both forms were female; the shorter one had soft sea foam green hair that dragged in the snow from her twin tails, bundled up in a woolen blue coat. The other had glossy sakura locks that hung to her waist in thick plaits, similarly bundled in a woolen lined leather coat. When Piko said nothing, anxiety and confusion battling for his attention behind wide eyes, the girl in pigtails shyly spoke up.

“Um…hi, we were looking for our friend, Meiko-chan? Have you seen her? She left us with this note about a study vacation, but we found out she came this way – it’s not the right way to her favorite spots - and we were hoping you might have seen her. She’s got this reddish-brown hair, and she would’ve been wearing a red coat –“

“Ahhh – y-you want Meiko?” Piko stuttered. He felt like an idiot – the castle was hidden from accidental prying eyes, but if searched out hard enough, it showed itself. Of course, only females were allowed to find it when they looked, but none had ever really tried before. Except, of course, Meiko, and her apparently devoted friends. “She…um…she has been here, b-but she’s…out at the moment. P-please, come inside, y-you’re welcome to w-wait here.” It was all he could think to say. What else could he say? You’re the first visitors besides Meiko to come here in almost two centuries, and your friend is out with a stranger tracking down my prince who has most likely succumbed to a loss of sanity? Nope. No, even with his dulled social sense, he still knew that conversation would not end well. Trained in the ways of common polite hospitality, Piko ushered them in out of the cold, removing their coats and hanging them to dry. He them seated them by the dying fire, stoking it back to life, and disappeared to cobble together a small snack tray with some hot tea. He dreaded returning to the room, because they would surely have questions for him that he wasn’t sure he could answer. At least, not truthfully. Through the cracked door, he heard bits of their conversation; “this place is kinda creepy,” “maybe Meiko was kidnapped,” “do you think we should trust him?” and the like. 

Piko hurriedly returned with the tray, and while both girls eyed it hungrily, they didn’t touch the meat or crackers. Piko worried they might think it was drugged or poisoned – he’d certainly heard stories about such horrible things happening across the country, especially to young girls, from royal blood or otherwise. They sat quietly for a bit, the constant chatter of the clock filling their silence, and Piko refused to sit beside them for their own comfort. He almost didn’t sit at all, because his more intense training forbade it so that he did not appear unprofessional to the guests. However, he nervously settled into a seat on the opposite side of the fire, because he hadn’t been using formalities like that for many years. Finally, after several awkward minutes of uncomfortable quiet, the rose headed girl cleared her throat, startling Piko, and spoke.

“So…I’m Megurine Luka, and this is my good friend, Hatsune Miko. We thought Meiko was away studying, but she wasn’t at her usual study spots. How did Meiko end up….here?” Piko had the feeling she was about to say, ‘in a place like this,’ and he wrung his hands, nibbling a few crackers to at least set their minds at ease that he wasn’t trying to deceive them. It was an old, drafty, ancient castle, after all; he could only imagine their surprise upon finding it engulfed in footprints and very much occupied. 

“Ah….I’m….Utatane Piko…I’m the chef and groundskeeper here. Meiko – she…well…it’s complicated…she…erm…” He was thankfully saved further explanation when the chestnut-haired girl herself burst through the front door, showered in powdery snow and shivering from the cold. It was a bit like the arrival of a hero in a story, although her worried expression did nothing to save the trio from their anxieties. 

“Piko!” She cried, grabbing a lantern off the wall and checking its oil. “Gakupo - he’s found him, but it doesn’t look good! Hurry, we need your help!” Before she ran back out the door, a frantic Piko at her heels pulling on his white belted coat, Luka and Miku hurried after them, calling out for Meiko. She paused only briefly, her glistening eyes wide in surprise, before she shook her head. 

“No! Not right now. Focus, Meiko! Girls, stay here, we’ll be right back! And drink some tea for goodness’ sake, Piko makes it special and you can’t let it go to waste!” And just like that, they were gone, Meiko slamming the door shut in their wake. The girls could only stand and stare, dumbfounded. They were used to Meiko being a bit…flighty, but this was different. She had looked panicked – maybe her ‘study vacation’ was really a secret medical training mission with live subjects, they wondered as they discussed it together. They had heard of special programs like that cropping up in larger cities. Maybe Meiko had been told not to tell anyone about it? They wondered if they should leave, or follow after them. But, they ultimately decided to stay behind as Meiko had commanded. Besides, it was dark out, and Meiko had taken the only filled lantern they could see. The only light they had came from the fireplace. Uneasily, they settled into the empty castle to wait for their return, the ticking of the clock and the encroaching darkness the only things to keep them company.

\\( ‘ – ‘ )/

I was running hard, pelting through the woods like a frightened deer, shoving limbs out of my way and snapping many more in my wake. I didn’t care if I was leaving an easy trail to follow, I just needed to be away, far away, as far as I could get. The mounds of snow were nothing to me – in a battle between my fragmented nerves, my desperation to get away, and the snow, the snow lost easily. My heart was pounding, my legs were burning, but I pressed on. The irritating tickle at the back of my throat was beating its way out into thick, hacking coughs, and the longer I ran, the worse it became. I ignored it. I ignored my faltering steps, my shallow breaths. I ignored it all. I’d never been in this part of the forest before. There were no paths, there were few tracks even from animals, and I pressed on. Many miles away from that dreadful castle’s walls, I spotted a clearing ahead in the glow of the moonlight, and I felt a fresh breath of relief, and I was so much lighter already – perhaps I could construct some kind of wall, a fort, a cage, to keep me properly locked away like they should’ve done that first day after I brought the curse on myself and everyone around me. 

Upon reaching the clearing, however, I collapsed, heaving and choking. One clawed hand vainly reached for my heart, clutching the painfully pounding area. Now that I was a fair distance away, secluded in the woods with a plan that I needed to enact before my discovery, my body had decided to remind me that while my mind was rapidly becoming inhuman, the rest of me was still mostly human at its core, and after all the abuse I’d put it through over the years, it couldn’t take any more. Unable to catch my breath, I peered up through watery eyes at the sturdy trees around me, imagining a box-like structure covering me under their impenetrable layers. It was peaceful, I noticed. Beautiful; different trees surrounded the clearing, crystallized reeds and certainly flowers dotting the edges. A nice place to be forgotten. A perfect place to die. Even after having stopped running, my heart was pounding harder, the coughs harsher. So engrossed in stifling the noise, I never heard the other, more natural sound coming from beneath me. I never realized that none of the frozen reeds or flowers were actually growing in the clearing; they only littered the edges like a weak grass fence. With a loud CRAAACK!! The ice I discovered only moments before it claimed me under my knees gave way.

The only thing my oxygen starved brain could recognize was the cold. The water was literally freezing – even after so many decades of forcefully numbing myself to the cold, I wasn’t prepared for the frigidity of that pond water. The air above ground had reached into the negatives after sunset, and the water was certainly much, much colder. It stole my choked breath away, my body instantly freezing stiff. I sank deeper, deeper, and finally hit bottom. It was a relatively shallow pond, its black waters only about ten and a half feet in the ground, but it was deep enough. Ice crystals were already forming on my jacket, on my skin, on the tips of my hair. I couldn’t move, I couldn’t breathe, and everything burned with a numbing, aching chill. A strangled cough wrenched out of my throat, water filling my lungs. I didn’t want to die like this, I realized. What would happen to Piko, to Gakupo, if I died? Would the curse…could it be transferred to one of their souls if I was gone? I didn’t know. But I never wanted to drag them down this far with me, I certainly wasn’t going to make one of them take on a burden that was mine and mine alone to bear. If I was to die, I was going to die naturally – it was the only way I could see out at this point. Nevertheless, it was enough motivation to make me fight for my life as I struggled to make something, anything move to help me reach the surface.

Of course, as my vision darkened around the edges, my locked joints refusing to move, I thought of Gakupo, and Piko…and Meiko. Did I feel regret for leaving them like that? Absolutely. But was I safer where I was, unable to hurt anyone one the last threads of humanity snapped away from my consciousness? No question. I could live with regret much more easily than I could give in to the rapidly approaching affects of the curse. My brother, my friend, my potential love…all of them I’d left behind, without a word, without a goodbye, without a way to escape. I felt so miserable – I was being so selfish, but what other option was there? Find true love? Please. The Kagamines had had it out for me ever since that day I broke their trust. I now knew that there was no chance in this world that I could solve their riddle and bring the kingdom back. Meiko was nice enough, but she was scared of me, I could see it in her eyes whenever she could see my fangs. She had been here…maybe a weekend. There was no way, on this earth, that I would even survive long enough to prove to her or anyone that I wasn’t always as short tempered as she’d seen since she arrived. My eyes closed – the cold had numbed to the point I couldn’t feel it, and now I just felt tired. 

If I died, right here and right now, I thought, the curse might transfer, it might not. I wanted to be selfish. Just this once, I wanted to be selfish without regret. I wanted to just let go. Surely, surely, death had to be at least a little better than this life? If not…well, there wasn’t anything I could do about that. Perhaps I was never destined to find happiness. Fate was a fickle thing. The bubbles around me had stopped. I started losing consciousness fast. My final thought trickled through my mind slowly, as if like the last hundred years, time had altogether stopped. 

“Maybe I was always a monster, and nothing more. Maybe the Kagamines were right – I really am horrible, inside and out…”

\\( ‘ – ‘ )/

“Oh, no you don’t!” Gakupo snarled, tossing his sword into a snowbank and shedding his thicker clothes such as his coat and winter kimono. “Baka – I’m trying to help you, you idiot!” He’d come across the icy pond much faster than his brother had, he was sure, as he had a clearer path to follow and better instincts on where to go. The footprints led to the hole – but not away. The gaping hole, glittering with the reflection of the lowering moon, seemed so much darker than when he’d first laid eyes on it. He hoped Meiko and Piko hurried – he could get Kaito above water at least, but he was positive that that would the best he could do in the cold. He wouldn’t be able to lift him out, or help keep him warm and breathing. There was only so much he could do on his own. They were about two hour’s fast trek from the castle, so that meant he’d be in the water quite a while. Sending up one last prayer that they would hurry, Gakupo dove into the water in only his shorts and undershirt, disappearing beneath the icy mirror. 

It was so cold – and dark. Both things he was unfortunately well acquainted with. As his eyes adjusted, he spotted him – at the bottom of the pond, his younger brother was lying there, still, stiff, dusted in a layer of fine ice crystals, his arms tangled up in a wad of dead vegetation and eyes closed. It struck Gakupo hard – he had spent many years helping the only family he had left to overcome his depression and his fears just so something like this would never happen. And just seeing him lying there, unmoving, possibly already too late to be saved anymore, after all those years, all that effort – it made Gakupo mad. This was his brother, he wasn’t about to let his hard work and his progress over the last century go to waste because of one irrational impulse! Or maybe it wasn’t impulse. Maybe Kaito had been anticipating doing this for quite some time, somewhere in the dark recesses of his mind. Gakupo latched onto Kaito’s arms, forcefully yanking him free. It was hard work dragging them both to the surface – Kaito weighed a ton in his sodden clothes and dead weight, now frosted in ice that couldn’t be weightless. Not to mention that Gakupo’s arms were laden down, both with the weight and the fact that ice was creeping up his own body, numbing his arms and legs rapidly. 

When his head burst from the murky depths into the crisp, quiet dawn, he knew he had to try getting them out before Meiko and Piko returned. No matter how fast they were, by the time they arrived, Gakupo would have started sinking. Pushing and shoving, straining and heaving, Gakupo managed to at least get the majority of Kaito’s upper body onto the ice. It was good enough. Gakupo pulled himself out with no small effort, and dragged them both away from the pond, dropping his brother’s water-logged body into the snow that felt warmer than the water. Gakupo knew he had to do several things before he could relax – he wasn’t certain how long Kaito had been submerged, so there had to be water in him that had to come out. Not to mention, there was no way he was going to get warmer in his ice laden clothes. Gakupo huffed out his panting breaths as he began reviving his brother, pausing occasionally to remove the jacket and shoes and what have you that Kaito had on him. He was frustrated, he was angry, but most of all, he was scared. Ever since he was six years old, the sturdy samurai had never shed a tear, justified or not. But this – this was different. This wasn’t a scraped knee, or a sad bedtime story, or the crushing responsibility he’d taken on before he was ready at eighteen – this was him, sopping wet in the snow, trying to revive his little brother, his short fangs peeking out, after the longest, hardest battle he’d ever fought – one that wasn’t physical. Despite his best efforts, he was sure at least one tear fell before he could wipe it away.

He knew his brother’s secrets. He knew it all. Kaito couldn’t hide anything from the sharp eyes of his bodyguard. All those scars, racing up and down both arms in a maze of dark vines, a mix of twisted patterns, all the sleepless days, all the uneaten food and the uncontrollable fits of despairing sobbing dotting across the trails of fits of uncontrollable rage and anger. Dealing with all that – the psychological turmoil, where Gakupo was least experienced, used to dealing with the physical problems surrounding him – heck, he’d only been eighteen when the curse had destroyed everything they loved and stole his brother from him. It was too much for him to deal with on his own. But he knew better. He understood that whatever he was going through couldn’t be compared to what Kaito was dealing with, and he could only keep smiling through all the trials, all the pain, all the hardships and depression and the effort, by reminding himself that there was hope. Kaito could do it, he knew it. Even if Kaito was broken, shattered into hundreds of thousands of lost, fragmented pieces, he was still strong enough to come out on top. The problem was, Gakupo had a hard time convincing him of that. There really wasn’t anything Gakupo could do except try to prove it to him; he was capable of doing it, he just needed a strong enough push in the right direction.

As Gakupo pounded on his little brother, listening intently for the inevitable footsteps crunching through the snow to help, he just kept muttering aloud, letting his thoughts trail out into the calm air, hoping that by some miracle, Kaito would hear and wake up. If the baka could just understand how much more he was capable of – how much more he could do, how close they were to breaking the curse, how much encouragement he had behind him – maybe he’d be able to stop this. He had so much support; even if it solely came from Gakupo, even if there was only one person left to guard his back, he could still do it. He could still overcome the curse. He just had to realize it himself.

All of the sudden, as Gakupo paused to breathe, Kaito spasmed harshly, violently coughing water out of his lungs. As quickly as he was expelling water all over the snow beside them, Gakupo was falling back on his heels, so relieved he couldn’t do anything but watch his brother pull himself together. As the last few drops of water fell, Kaito’s hazy, teary gaze found its way toward Gakupo, who smiled right back. Those long canines dragged themselves over his bottom lip in a familiar motion, and Gakupo leaned closer to hear the hoarse whisper Kaito ground out.

“Y-you…G-G-Gakupo…d-did…you…m-m-mean that…a-all of…all of i-it…?” As the moon set and the sun began its ascent to the sky, Gakupo bit his lip, chuckled, and burst out laughing. He laughed and laughed and laughed at the expense of his pouting little brother. Calming himself, he fondly scratched a shaky hand through dripping blue locks. 

“Of course. Baka. I’ve always been here. And I always will. I’m at your service, your majesty. I’ll stay by your side and do as you please. But if not following orders keeps you alive a little longer, well, I won’t be accused of treason without reason.” Kaito blinked at him, probably wondering if they’d both lost it, crossing the line into hysteria. Then…his mouth twitched. He smiled. It wasn’t weak, or fake. It was genuine, bright, happy. And he laughed. For the first time sine Kaito was only thirteen, he laughed, hoarse and croaking. He didn’t reply, but he didn’t have to. Finally, they both realized that one disastrous night, only a few hours of turmoil, had made leaps and bounds more progress than they could have imagined. For once, they didn’t worry. Together, they sat in the snow, half frozen, half dead, and laughed together in the shade of the trees as the sun broke the horizon. It was one of the best moments they’d ever experienced together, and neither were willing to let it end.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize for the short length. Please let me know if you enjoyed it, or if it was too wordy, or what have you. I hope you enjoyed! \\( ' - ' )/

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you enjoyed that chapter! The others I've got written right now won't be too long (once I've edited them) and soon my other stories will follow. Please leave a review if you enjoyed or if you caught any grammar or spelling mistakes, or even little plot holes. I'd much appreciate it! (And if anyone can catch the reference to an unrelated fandom in here, please leave your findings in a review on the next chapter!) \\( ' - ' )/


End file.
